Thread: Straight Razor Designs 3" Rock Hard Wool & Herringbone Cotton Weave

When I started shaving, I thought that strops were the least important piece of equipment. So I chose a tiny 2" Dovo strop. Like almost any beginner, I turned it into mincemeat quickly. It was replaced by the strop I still consider the best in the market, the Old Traditional "Natur" by The Different Scent.

The Old Traditional does, however, have a distinct disadvantage: It comes with a leather side only. So Lynn treated me to a Straight Razor Designs 3" Premium I Leather Strop with webbing. And it was good, too. I like the size, and use it for wedges in particular. Very nice strop. But I did not like the feedback the webbing gave, and I had always wanted to try diamond spray.

Enter the Straight Razor Designs 3" Rock Hard Wool & Cotton with 15 Carat .5 micron Diamond Spray 4 oz. or 8 oz. Spray Bottle, which I am about to review. Here is what SRD have to say about their product:

Looking for a Strop for pastes and sprays then this is the perfect tool to add to your honing and stropping arsenal. The 100% Wool Rock Hard Felt is the perfect strop for all your pastes and sprays there is not a better medium. And then choose your second strop from the following choices. This is a must have Strop.

Even taking into account that Don is a born and bred salesman, this sounded like a tad much. But I needed a linen strop, and wanted to try the diamond spray. So I grasped the proverbial nettle and ordered it. The package was shipped promptly (thanks, Don!), and arrived yesterday (no love for German customs).

Feedback: The hard pressed wool felt has a unique feedback. It feels like dragging your razor across very old woollen socks. But then again, you only need 5 rounds on the diamond sprayed surface to achieve what you want to achieve, namely this (this is after two razors, ie 10 rounds, click to enlarge).

The cotton has fantastic feedback (based on which the strop receives 10 points in this section). It is not linen, but it is every bit as good as linen. And it works simply well. I will swap the linen and webbing on the two SRD strops I have, though, as the webbing is said to work well with CrOx.

Speed: Forget the felt, but the linen is great. High speed stropping is not a problem.

Durability: In typical SRD fashion, this strop is made to last. The image shows the handles with rivets. Everything fits snugly, and the strop does not cup even under strain. Very nice. The strop gets a 9 only because I think that the cotton will not last as long as, for example Tony Miller's linen (which otherwise I like less).


Portability: n/a.I think this rating will go in the not too distant future, anyhow. If required, you can probably simply iron the strop. It is shipped unrolled, though, and it arrived in perfect condition, so I did not have to try that trick.

Size: 3" strops are, if you do no mind the jargon, cool. Stropping Area 17 inches by 3 inches. Overall Length 28 inches - perfect for lazy people like me.

Craftsmanship: In a nutshell: SRD. The design is tried and trued, and impeccably executed. There is nothing to criticise about the strop in terms of craftsmanship - it is built to last, and simply feels good in your hands.


Price: $49.98 with the herringbone cotton weave. Add $22.99 for the .5 micron diamond spray, and you are looking at the counter-value of a Dovo "Best Quality" razor. Is this strop worth it? Absolutely. Not only do you get a perfectly crafted product, you also get a perfect medium for the diamond spray. And this is where the beauty lies: The spray will give an already good edge that extra kick it deserves. I absolutely like it.

Overall: If you can spare the money, get this strop. For the spray freaks among our readers, another felt side with a different grit diamond spray might make a lot of sense, too. Two thumbs up for this strop from me.